Spirits of Tomorrow
by gypsy season
Summary: This continues to explore Trinity’s previous relationship with Ghost, including a previous accident and a chance meeting during the present.


I'm just messing around with one or two seconds of that wonderful trailer for Enter the Matrix and some interesting fueled conversations. And no, there is no ice cube involved in this. This is the sequel to Ghosts of Yesterday and it's the 2nd fic in my trilogy. To ease your confusion, the fic picks up a little bit after the mess hall scene but before the Dojo.

  
Sorry I took so long to write this. I just had my mind on other things. I know some people who have been waiting, though, so this is for you. ;)

The parts of a song I have throughout this fic are from 'Ghost', by the Indigo Girls. This song belongs to them, not me. They are wonderful, and I suggest downloading that song. But enough of my shameless advertising.

Spirits of Tomorrow

Ghost was sleeping the night he first found out how much harm the sentinels could cause. Dane was steering the Logos through the sewers while the rest crew (except for Ghost, exhausted from training) was eating in the mess hall. Catching everyone by surprise, the lights suddenly flashed red and alarms went off. Niobe was the first out of her seat, cursing under her breath as she ran to the cockpit, followed by Circe while Morpheus made his way to the core to wait by the EMP.

While everyone went where they did, Trinity went to Ghosts room. She swung open the door and met dark brown eyes, filled with fear. "What's happening?" Trinity almost missed his whisper when the ship lurched violently, having crashed against the sewer wall. The screeching metal was deafening - Trinity was caught off guard and went sailing into the wall, her shoulder slamming against the metal with a nauseating snap. Her knees gave way and she slid to the ground, her shoulder burning with pain, real pain, not like in the Matrix, and common sense told her to keep her shoulder tight against the wall.

Ghost, who had already been sleeping against the wall, flew out of his bed and was at the woman's side in an instant, wanting to help, though he didn't even know her name - it was something with a 'T', or a 'C'. His eyes darted around wildly, trying to find out what was going on, while Trinity bit her lip to keep from sobbing.

"Sentinel attack." She spoke through clenched teeth, her voice tense with pain. "Hold the fuck onto something and don't you dare let go." With her good arm she held onto a pipe in the wall a few inches above her head. Ghost jumped up and nearly fell over before grabbing a pipe in the wall to steady himself, but he wouldn't go to a safer spot. He was worried about Trinity - yes, he was sure that was her name.

Trinity grasped the pole tighter, knowing her legs wouldn't let her stand, at least not with the Logos slamming into the walls of the sewers, the metal screaming and her shoulder on fire. She had to keep her shoulder against the wall, she knew by instinct. Otherwise the pain would be much worse. Ghost was coming to help her up, but she knew that would only get them into worse trouble. Better having one injured than two, and Trinity was not about to have the rookie put himself in danger for her safety. "Get the hell into a corner or somewhere!" She didn't mean to sound as harsh as she did, but at least he listened.

He withdrew, looking almost as hurt as Trinity, although he had no physical injuries. He took a breath to speak, but the metal shrieked once more and the Logos crash-landed hard on the ground. Even with both hands, Trinity would not have been able to stay pressed against the wall at this time - she and Ghost were both tossed to the other wall before it all stopped. Then the lights snapped off, along with the heat and the engines, leaving all on the Logos blind and freezing at the bottom of the sewers.

All Trinity heard was Ghost's heavy breathing, she saw nothing, her eyes squeezed shut to block out the pain of her shoulder. It had to be broken, otherwise it wouldn't hurt so much. Her hands were clenched into tight fists, waiting for Morpheus to use the EMP. Until then, all they had to do was wait for the sentinels to leave or attack. Living real was always a waiting game.

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The Logos was banged up on the outside, but surprisingly it obtained little interior damage. The computers, the engine, everything was almost perfectly fine. Trinity seemed to be the most injured out of everyone, having suffered a broken shoulder while the rest of the crew was just banged-up and bruised. Ghost had been safe in his corner while the others were strapped to the seats in the cockpit and the core. Trinity had just run out of luck that night.

Her entire arm was put in a sling to restrict all movement that could cause further injury to her shoulder, but it still hurt, so she crept into the med bay one night for some more painkillers. More than Morpheus had allowed her to have. She was almost home free when her arm in the splint banged against a wall she could not see through the dark. She staggered and cried out, the painkillers clattering noisily on the ground as they fell. Her pain was blinding - and it was real.

And then she felt arms pulling her to her feet. She didn't even remember falling. The arms led her to a door, opening it, it was her room. Whoever was with her guided her to her bed - she didn't turn to look who it was - and sat down beside her. "You ok?" One hand came to rest on her cheek, the other softly rubbed her back. It was a touch she was not familiar with, and she searched the darkness for a familiar face. She nodded, the pain in her arm having been reduced to a dull burning.

They sat together for a while, before gentle arms pushed her so she was lying down and tucked her in like a father. He left her with a gentle "Good night," and she played the words over in her head a few times before realizing that it had been Ghost, coming and going in a way that only his name could have explained.

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The Mississippi's mighty, but it starts in Minnesota

At a place that you could walk across with five steps down.

And I guess that's how you started, like a pinprick to my heart

But at this point you rush right through me and I start to drown.

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It was Ghost's first time back into the Matrix since his unplugging. Trinity was driving him to the Oracle's, and with every glance at the rearview mirror, she saw his eyes glued to the window. She saw the longing and recognition is his eyes as they drove past old places that he had had visited in his life in the Matrix.

She knew it hurt him. God, the first time back always hurt the most. Ghost had just spent a long time being told that the Matrix was just a dream, none of it was real, but now that he was back it seemed easy a subject to argue. Inside the Matrix seemed so real, so familiar. Trinity knew the feeling. When she got back from her first run, she collapsed onto her bed and sobbed into her pillow for hours.

"So…" He said finally. "Who, or what, is this Oracle?"

Trinity grinned. "She's just someone that will help you along your path." Truthfully, no one really knew that much about the Oracle, whose advice would only confuse the person that came to her, so it was a running joke to always confuse the next crewmember about her.

"My path…" Ghost said thoughtfully. "My path to what?"

"Your future."

They were both silent for a few minutes before Ghost spoke again. "So she's like some kind of fortune teller?"

Trinity remembered her prophecy, which wasn't all that much, but it was about her future. The Oracle knew everything, but kept most of it to herself. It was very frustrating to Trinity to go all the way to her apartment only to leave with less sureness than before. "Well, she doesn't exactly _tell_ you anything." She had a happy tone in her voice, amused.

Ghost just shook his head, directing his vision back to the window. "This was all…bullshit." He sounded like he was making some kind of revelation that will affect the rest of the world. Well, it was a major, world-impacting revelation, but one that had been made long before Ghost had come to the conclusion.

"The Matrix? Yeah, pretty much." Ghost looked uneasy. "Pretty good lie, huh?"

Trinity's efforts were to make Ghost feel better, but they were failing; they seemed to make the rookie miserable. He muttered something inaudible under his breath.

Coming to a red light, Trinity turned around to look at the rookie in the backseat, trying again. "It's funny, how real things can seem. I miss popcorn." Ghost did not respond. "Curling up on the couch, watch old movies, eat popcorn." she said, offering a smile. This time Ghost made an effort to smile back.

"I miss baseball."

"You used to play?"

"With my brothers and the neighborhood boys. We'd play in the road until one kid almost got run over, and our parents took away our bats. Wouldn't let us play anymore."

Trinity waited until the light turned green before talking again.

"They have something like that in Zion. I can't remember the name, something with a stick, five bases, two balls, it looked interesting enough." She saw Ghost's eyes light up in the mirror.

"Is there a…?"

"League?"

A nod.

"Oh yeah."

A smile.

"Alright, we're here."

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And there's not enough room in this world for my pain

Signals cross and love gets lost and time passed makes it plain

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They waited by the hatch, the Logos in the process of docking with the Neb. Even Neo was there, and he was so weak but wanted to be there with everyone else to meet the crew of the Logos. One arm was around Trinity's shoulders to help him stand. His other arm hung at his side, his fist clenched.

Trinity took the hand around her shoulder gently in her own, her eyes focused on the hatch door, her thoughts wandering elsewhere.

__

Their arms are holding each other never wanting to let go. They are in their private quarters in Zion, but she is leaving the next morning on the Nebuchadnezzar. "I love you," he whispers, his head at her ear. "Promise you won't forget me."

She sighed, her warm breath caressing his skin. She pulls him closer. "How can I? You make me whole." She traces his back with her hands, picking up every bone, muscle and plug to keep cherished in memory. "After tonight I'll have a hole in my heart."

This hurts him, and he exhales sharply. "Please don't say that. You're making it harder."

"Things like this aren't meant to be easy." She is beginning to get frustrated, and she blames Morpheus for taking her away from the one thing in the world she loves.

"I've been left before." Ghost admitted, looking down at the sheets. "It's nothing new to me. Everyone I thought loved me has left me."

"I love you so much, Ghost." And she reached off the bed for the shirt she had been wearing, ripping a piece off and pressing it into his hand. "Keep that, remember me. I will never love anyone as much as I love you."

"Trinity, I don't have-" He says, his breath tickling her cheek, his voice thick with anguish. "I don't have anything to give to you."

She runs her fingers through his hair, a sad smile forming on her lips. "Yes you do." And they made love that night, and in the morning she was gone.

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Of all my demon spirits I need you the most

In love with your Ghost.

I'm in love with your Ghost.

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Trinity didn't notice she had been squeezing Neo's hand with both of hers. The noisy opening of the hatch brought her back to reality. She slipped one arm around Neo's waist to keep him steady. He was struggling to keep as much weight off Trinity as he could, although he knew how strong she was. Her hand giving his a gently squeeze caused him to relax. "You seem nervous." He whispered in her ear.

But Trinity shook her head. "I'm fine." No need to tell Neo about the man she promised to love more than she would ever love anyone else, no need to cause him more pain. He had enough piled onto his shoulders that Trinity feared he would break down if he had anything more. In such a short time he had gone from being a nobody to being told he was humanity's last hope.

The hatch was opened and the Logos crew came in, Captain Niobe first, only stronger as time went on, followed by Circe, who seemed to have aged as if she had been gone much longer than five years. Behind them were all unfamiliar faces, one of them having no hair at all. Trinity immediately sympathized with him, watching his eyes darting around, jumping at the slightest noise.

Trinity held her breath; Ghost was dead, she knew it, that's why they had unplugged their newest. Her heart thundered in her chest as time came to a standstill.

__

"Breathe, you prick."

Circe's voice in her head, it was just like the night they unplugged Ghost. But then another familiar voice filled her ears.

  
"Circe, you forgot a bag."

Trinity let the air out of her lungs slowly so she wouldn't attract any attention. Ghost came in last, carrying two bags. He handed one to Circe, who slung it over her shoulder. Trinity's eyes followed Ghost, waiting for him to turn to her, and when he did, he saw her arm around Neo; he nodded and looked 

away.

__

Ghost, please don't give me this.

Captain Morpheus greeted the crew of the Logos, offering them hospitality. Ghost was not looking up.

I fell in love. We weren't meant to be together forever.

The group left to plan, most likely in the mess hall. Trinity stayed back with Neo, watching Ghost leave. He gave her a haunted look before closing the door behind him, a look that lingered before her eyes even when she looked at Neo. "What do you want to do? Are you feeling ok?"

Neo swallowed hard, as if making a difficult decision. Trinity saw this, along with a hint of embarrassment in his eyes. Embarrassed for being weak? "You want me to come back with you?"

He nodded, embarrassment replaced with want, hunger, adoration. "Yeah, I'd like that."

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Unknowing captor, you'll never know how much you

Pierce my spirit, but I can't touch you.

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End file.
